Process of producing n-vinyl compounds



.1 alcoholate.

a Patented Apr. 11,1939

UNITED STATES PROCESS OF PRODUCING N-VINYL COMPOUNDS Walter Reppe, Ernst Keyssner, and Fritz Nicolai,

Indwlgshafen-on-the-Rhlne, Germany, assignore to I. G. Farbenlndustrie Aktiengesellschaft,

Frankfort-on-the-Maln, Germany No Drawing. Application December 9, 1936, Se-

i'laaslsNo. 114,975. In Germany December 18,

2 Claims.

The present invention relates to a process of producing N-vinyl compounds.

U. 8. Patent 2,066,160 to Reppe et al. describes a process of producing N-vinyl compounds according to which acetylene is caused to act at temperatures above C. on pyrrole compounds, i. e. pyrrole or organic compounds containing the pyrrole ring in the presence of an alkali metal or an alkali metal hydroxide or We have now found that the said N-vinyl compounds can be obtained, also in good yields, by causing organic compounds to act in admixture with hydroxides of the alkali or alkaline ll earth metals or with the alkali compounds of the said substances in the presence of inert solvents or suspension agents at temperatures above 100 C. on vinyl halides or dihalogen derivatives of ethane such as ethylene or ethvlidene' halides.

Q As compoundscontaining the pyrrole ring besides. pyrrole itself may be mentioned for example indole', carbazole and naphthocarbazole.

The compounds obtainable from the said compounds by the addition of hydrogen or by the introduction of other atoms or atomic groups may be employed provided that they still contain a free NH-sroup.

As inert solvents or suspension agents suitable for the present process may be mentioned alcohol, glycols, as for example ethylene glycol or diethylene glycol, or hydrocarbons, as for example ceclohexane, benzene, toluene, tetrahydro-- naphthalene or decahydronaphtalene. Solid compounds, such as carbasole, are preferably made into a paste with a diluent of the said The reaction proceeds most favorably between 100' and 200 C.

'lhe vinyl compounds obtained my be separated from the alkaline substances and salts formed in the reaction and purified by distillation, if desired under reduced pressure, by extraction with suitable solvents or by crystallisation.

The following example will further illustrate how the present invention may be carried out in practice but the invention is not restricted to this example. The parts are by weight.

trample Iquimolecular amounts of carbazole and potassium hydroxide together with three times the amount of methylnaphthalene are heated to the boiling point of the methylnaphthalene while stirring vigorously. The dormation of potassium carbasole commences at about 180 C. with the splitting o! of water which distiis oil alcohols, as for example methyl, ethyl or butyl together with the methyinaphthalene. As soon as the methylnaphthalene passing over is clear, the formation of potassium carbazole is completed.

' The resulting potassium carbazole is filtered while excluding air and washed with hexahydroxylene, 60 partst of the potassium carbazole are charged into a pressure-tight vessel and 50 parts of hexahydroxylene are added. After expelling the air from the vessel by means of nitrogen, 16 parts of vinyl chloride are introduced. The whole is then heated to from 180 to 190 C. while shaking until the pressure, which temporarily increases to about 20 atmospheres, remains constant at about 8 atmospheres.

The reaction mixture is freed from simultaneously formed potassium chloride by filtration and subjected to fractional distillation. After the hexahydroxylene has passed over, the vinylcarbazole' formed passes over at from to C. under a-pressure of 1 millimeter (mercury gaufle).

Instead of carbazole the above mentioned other pyrrole compounds can be employed in a similar manner. when starting from ethylene or ethylidene halides preferably the double amount of alkalies is employed.

What we claim is:

l. A process of producing N-vinyl compounds which comprises causing a pyrrole compound selected from the class consisting of pyrroles, indoles, carbasoles and naphtho-carbasoles having afree Nil-group in admixture with a substance of the group consisting of hydroxides and alcoholates of the alkali and alkaline earth metals and alkali compounds oi said pyrrole compoundstoaetinaclosedvesselonanibstance of the group consisting of vinyl halides and dihalogen derivatives of ethane in the pruence of an inert diluent at temperatures above 100' C.

2. A process of producing N-vinyl compounds which comprises causing a pyrrole. compound selected from the class consisting of pyrroles, indoles, carbazoles and naphtho-carbasoles, having a tree NH-group in admixture with a substance of the group consisting of hydroxides and alcoholates of the alkali and alkaline earth metals and the. alkali compounds of said pyrrole compounds to act in a closed vessel on a substance of the group consisting of vinylhalides and dlhalogen derivatives of ethane in the presence of an inert diluent at temperatures between 100 and 200 C.

WALTER REPPE. ERNST KEYSSNER. FRITZ NICOLAI. 

